The Azure Crusade
by SiRoLoL
Summary: Having seen the destruction a world rune can cause, Ryze vowed to keep them sealed away from the world at all costs. Unfortunately, as new obstacles and enemies appear in his path, he begins to have trouble tackling the task on his own. However, that changes completely when he runs into a danger-loving explorer and an overly-excited Demacian mage.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

 **Baptism of Fire**

* * *

Ryze had always been afraid of fire. The pain and destruction an uncontrolled fire could cause was terrifying, but it wasn't what troubled him the most. The scariest aspect of a fire is the fact that once it gets out of control, it can't be stopped.

He'd seen destruction, sorrow, and death. And despite being a powerful mage, even he'd felt powerless when faced with a raging fire.

Shaking his thoughts off, Ryze took a step back, making sure his hands were empty. As he opened his eyes, he saw a red crystal placed in a pillar in front of him. It reminded him of a fire; an unstoppable power waiting for the right moment to show its true colors. But he wasn't as afraid anymore; the object was now, at least temporarily, powerless. He breathed a sigh of relief, as a smile formed on his face. He'd just managed to take control of another world rune.

He took a look around the room, making sure everything was working the way it should be. There were four more pillars, three of which already held their own rune. Every crystal was different from the others, both in color and shape. In their current state, surrounded by the magic-resistant metal, they looked relatively harmless... but the mage knew better than that. Even without a brain of their own, they were weapons of mass destruction capable of razing entire countries with ease. And he wasn't going to underestimate them... never again.

"Finally..." Ryze whispered to himself, as he shifted his glance towards the last, empty pillar, "the last one."

However, the mage's grin quickly disappeared, as he began to feel the room getting warmer. Something was happening, and it definitely wasn't good. His expression twisted from surprised to one of horror in an instant, while the echo of a familiar laugh echoed in the walls. Although the voice was cold and twisted, its laughter was filled with a burning passion.

"So close, yet so far..." the voice hissed from behind Ryze, making the mage turn around almost immediately. Even with his hearing getting worse because of age, he could recognize the voice as soon as it reached him. And what he saw in the darkness only proved him right.

A man stood in the shadows, staring Ryze down menacingly with his piercing eyes. His entire body was covered in a bright fire, which didn't seem to mind the anti-magic material in the walls. Ryze tried his best to stay calm and collected, but he couldn't stop his body from trembling. That man was the fire he was afraid of. His name was Brand.

"You... what are you doing here?" asked the mage.

"You look desperate, Ryze," Brand replied with a mocking tone, as he began slowly walking across the room, "that scared look on your face... there are people who would _kill_ to see it."

"These walls are made of petricite... your magic shouldn't work here..." Ryze said, his voice cracking. He'd always been stronger than Brand, but not even his magic could completely ignore the effect of petricite. That made Brand a more dangerous foe than Ryze would have hoped, but he knew he didn't have the luxury of fleeing from that battle.

"Times change, old friend. When we last fought, my power was too young and weak to stand a chance against you," Brand said, as he began conjuring a large fireball in his hands, "but as you can see... I've matured."

As the fireball grew bigger and bigger, Ryze began summoning an orb of energy with his own magic. However, being under the effect of petricite, his spell paled in comparison to Brand's flames. Eventually, Brand's fireball grew too huge to be contained in the room, and it touched the walls and the ceiling of the petricite vault.

Ryze knew that was Brand's limit, and a new spark of hope glew in his mind. Even though Brand had an advantage in a battle of sheer power, there was still a limit that he couldn't overcome: the enti-magic walls of the vault. Ryze smiled once again and threw his orb at the fire mage, hoping to distract him. He quickly conjured several smaller orbs and fired them almost instantly, knowing Brand would have to protect himself, thus dispelling the fireball. Unfortunately, Brand only widened his grin in response to the spell.

"I know what you're thinking, Ryze. 'The petricite is his limit. His magic can't go further than that, and I can still win'," Brand told the rune mage, taking him by surprise. As soon as the orbs collided with Brand's body, however, they all disintegrated and vanished into the air, leaving him unharmed.

Ryze's eyes widened in shock, but before he could reply, Brand pointed his finger at the ceiling. As the rune mage looked up, he saw the flame getting even bigger and burning through the petricite that was supposed to stop it. The walls soon started to crumble, and large chunks of petricite began falling everywhere across the room.

"How did-"

"I haven't seen that expression in ages! SHOW ME WHAT YOU'VE GOT, RYZE!" Brand shouted victoriously, as he launched the gigantic fireball at Ryze.

The mage wanted to summon a barrier, but his magic wasn't quick enough and the flame engulfed him, sending repetitive surges of sharp, unbearable pain across his body. He could feel his skin and flesh slowly dissolving, and the wounds then immediately closing due to the heat. Before his vision faded to black, however, the fire vanished, leaving Ryze standing still, unable to move a muscle without feeling the burns.

As he slowly walked past Ryze, Brand said nothing but one word: "Pathetic."

Clenching his teeth and doing his best to ignore the pain, the rune mage could only watch as his enemy approached the pillar with a red rune placed inside. Smiling from ear to ear, he grasped the rune firmly, making it glow even brighter than ever before. Soon, red lines of energy began flowing out of the crystal into Brand's body, making the flames surrounding him glow even brighter.

"Don't touch it... you don't know what you're doing..." Ryze uttered, taking a slow but long step towards the pillar. Unfortunately, his wounds wouldn't let him take another one.

"Stop it..." he continued. Although he wanted to do something, every time he tried to conjure an orb of magic, it evaporated before it even became large enough to hurt Brand.

Knowing that he was powerless, Ryze just stood there and watched as the rune and the flames slowly merged into one, making the fire covering Brand's skin bloody red. As soon as the energy stopped flowing out of the rune, it broke apart into tiny, now powerless, crystals.

"Cease this madness, Brand! If you keep this up, the runes are going to destroy you!"

Brand didn't reply at first. His eyes were focused only on the vast amounts of power surging from his body, and the shattered rune lying in front of him. It wasn't a weapon of mass destruction anymore... only a regular, uninteresting crystal.

The man then quickly shifter his attention to Ryze, stretching out his arm. With a snap of his fingers, a large sword made of fire immediately appeared in his hand. Empowered by the world rune, the sword looked several times as frightening and powerful as the fireball that had previously overpowered the rune mage.

"If I perish, there are others who can take up my torch and continue my journey. But you... you're all alone," Brand said, as he pointed the sword at Ryze's chest, "and that's your weakness, _Rune Mage_."

" **NO!"** the rune mage screamed as Brand pushed the blade forward, piercing right through his lungs and heart. Before the mage could do anything, the entire world went black.

* * *

" **NO!"**

Ryze's eyes went wide open as he shot up from the bed, breathing heavily. His body was covered in at least a bucket of sweat, and his limbs were sore and hard to move. His eyes shifted to his chest to look for the stab wound from the sword, and let out a sigh of relief when he couldn't find it.

With a loud groan, Ryze slowly lifted himself up from the bed. As soon as he stood up, he tried summoning a few magic orbs, thinking about the events which had happened in his dream. Usually, he would have assumed it was just a bad dream and forgotten about it. But it wasn't his first time experiencing that exact same nightmare, and oddly enough... it all sounded like a realistic way things could go.

Fortunately, he didn't have the time to bother himself with it too much. Shrugging off all the bad thoughts, he put on his clothes and packed his belongings as fast as he could. But no matter what he did, the nightmare were stuck in his mind, refusing to let him be. He saw Brand slowly engulfing him and the supposedly 'unpenetrable' petricite vault in raging flames, turning everything into dust.

" _You're all alone..."_

Brand's words echoed in his mind, with warped images of destruction quickly making their way into his memories and ripping apart everything that he'd once considered beautiful. Forests were burning, mountains were falling apart and families were grieving, all because of his failure.

" _...and that's your weakness, Rune Mage."_

Suddenly, everything stopped. His vision became clear once again as he clenched his fist. No matter how many things the monsters in his head got right, they were wrong about one thing; he hadn't failed yet.

"I'm not letting it happen," he reassured himself, as he lifted up one hand and summoned a large, pulsating pool of magic energy beneath his feet, "never again."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he disappeared into thin air, leaving nothing but a cold, empty room behind.

* * *

 _A/N: Hey there, everyone! First of all, I'd like to thank you for clicking on this story. Knowing that there are people who actually read your stories is an amazing feeling, and I've really missed it (theoretically, this story might not get any views in the end, but I'm just hoping for the better)._

 _I'd also like to thank ADamnGoodName and FicfansEverywhere, because their stories have inspired me to try producing something on my own. So yeah... thanks a lot, folks!_

 _Since the story's only just begun, I don't think there's a lot I need to say. The plot is pretty straightforward so far, but if you have anything you want to tell me, feel free to send me a PM. As someone who isn't the most social being out there, I'm up for a chat anytime._

 _And that's about it from me. If you enjoyed the prologue, please fave/follow the story and leave a review! Also, don't be afraid to be a bit harsh, I deeply appreciate constructive criticism._

 _Once again, thanks for reading, and stay tuned for the next chapter!_

 _Also, I'll try to make the A/Ns shorter and only put them at the end of a chapter, because I know how annoying they can sometimes be._

* * *

 **TO BE CONTINUED IN:**

 **Chapter One**

 **Jarro Lightfeather**


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter One**

 **Jarro Lightfeather**

* * *

As soon as the empty room vanished from Ryze's sight, it got replaced by a large tavern filled with old wooden tables, chairs, and a plenty of not very friendly-looking people. Every single person in the room kept their eyes locked on Ryze, some frightened and some impressed.

The rune mage expected the teleportation spell to draw some attention, so he tried teleporting to a location with no one around… unfortunately, he reappeared in one of the worst places he could've ended up in.

"Excuse me… where am I right now?" he asked nervously, but he received no answer from the surrounding people. Most of them were too shocked to respond or just didn't want to get involved in the situation, so the entire building waited in an awkward silence. Eventually, however, a large man stood up from one of the tables. Even through the long sleeves on his coat, Ryze could see scars all over the man's hands, along with some fresh wounds that haven't yet healed. His face was covered by a thick beard, but just like his hands, it wasn't in a perfect state.

The man spoke up with a raspy, deep voice: "Why, in Demacia, obviously. You should know that, considering the fact that you just teleported here,"

" _Where_ in Demacia, exactly?" Ryze said, trying his best to keep his composure. The man began walking closer to Ryze, and the mage could see an expression of anger on his face.

"Do I look like a fool to you, mage?"

As soon as the man got close enough, Ryze summoned a tiny orb in his right hand just in case things would get messy. Everyone else just quietly watched the scene from afar, and some of the people were clearly enjoying it.

"For your sake, I'm not answering that," the mage replied, and as soon as he finished the sentence, he could see a fist flying towards his face with incredible speed. Suddenly, the orb in Ryze's hand grew bigger as he slammed it into the man's fist, knocking him back as soon as they collided. However, the man recovered quicker than Ryze had expected, and swung his left fist at Ryze's face. The mage reacted quickly and summoned a magical barrier around the man, trapping him inside and stopping the fist only inches away from his face.

When Ryze looked around the pub to see if there were any people who wanted to take out their anger on him, everyone collectively turned away to avoid making eye contact with the mage. Just when he was about to walk away, he heard the man's breathing becoming heavier and louder.

"Scum like you has no place in Demacia," the man said furiously, as he took out a short, fancy-looking dagger. It didn't look very sharp, but Ryze knew it was probably sharp enough to actually hurt him.

"I have no plans to stay. I only came to talk to your king," Ryze told the man, trying to calm him down. The man replied with a slash of his dagger, easily cutting through the barrier between him and the rune mage.

Just as Ryze had feared, the dagger was made of petricite and could nullify the effects of magic with ease. He dodged the blade at the very last moment, saving his face from an ugly scratch. After that, the man continued his attack and decided to aim at the mage's stomach this time.

"I'm not letting you near our king, you monster!" the man yelled, as he lunged forward to stab the mage. When the blade was about to pierce Ryze's skin, however, it suddenly stopped. Surprised, the mage looked at the man, and saw a young blonde boy clinging onto the man's arm, only barely preventing it from moving. The boy didn't look older than twenty, and even despite being weaker than the man, he looked at him with a cocky smile on his face.

"Woah there, you could've… hurt him pretty bad, Craig," the blonde told the man, sweating from all the effort he had to put into protecting Ryze. "That's not how you treat a customer."

Craig, shocked by the boy's actions, looked at him with a disappointed expression on his face.

"Jarro… are you seriously protecting that mage? Murderers like him deserve no mercy!"

"He definitely doesn't look like the type of person to blow up a tavern for fun. Besides, haven't you killed people before, too?" the boy replied, and Craig was obviously taken aback by his answer. He stepped back and took a look around the room, carefully eyeing every single person.

"Are you fools just going to sit and watch?" he asked loudly, but just like before, most people just turned their heads to avoid looking him in the eye. Disappointed, Craig turned around and walked towards the entrance door. As he slowly opened them, he looked back at the people one more time.

"You're a bunch of cowards… just as I'd expected. I won't do anything, but I want that man out of my tavern as soon as possible, Jarro."

With those words, he walked out and slammed the door shut behind him, leaving the pub in an awkward silence once again. Noticing that he wasn't the center of attention anymore, Ryze breathed a sigh of relief and sat down at one of the nearby empty tables. Much to his surprise, the blond boy suddenly took a seat next to him and started talking.

"Hey, uh… sorry about not stopping this earlier, I haven't seen Craig get so emotional before. He's never been very fond of mages, but he hasn't tried turning one into minced meat before," he said.

Ryze looked at the boy with a warm smile, and told him: "Don't worry, it's not your fault. I should've expected that in Demacia. I could've handled it on my own, but either way… I appreciate your help, Ezreal."

As soon as he said the name, the blonde immediately covered the mage's mouth with his hand, taking him by surprise. He pointed his right hand at Ryze's stomach, and the mage saw a weird gauntlet on the boy's hand. He couldn't get a proper look at it back when Ezreal was holding Craig, but being threatened surely makes it easier to notice.

"If you say that out loud again, I'm going to go ahead and finish Craig's job myself. How do you even know my real name, anyway?" Ezreal asked, as he slowly moved his hand away from Ryze's face.

"You're pretty… _infamous_ in other parts of the world," the mage whispered.

"Yes, but not here. This is Demacia, and over here, I'm known as Jarro Lightfeather. No one knows my real name, and I want it to stay that way," Ezreal said, and Ryze simply nodded his head.

"Jarro Lightfeather. Got it."

The two just sat quietly for a few seconds, not having anything to say to each other. Ryze took his bag off his shoulders and carefully inspected it to see if everything was okay. Thankfully, all of his books, scrolls and other magical items were in perfect shape, just like they should've been, putting a wide smile on his face. As soon as the mage closed his bag again, Ezreal decided to finally interrupt the silence.

"So… what brings a mage like you to Demacia?"

"I need to talk to the king. Unfortunately, I haven't been to Demacia in a while… and apparently, things have changed quite a bit," replied Ryze. Ezreal leaned back on the chair and thought about it for a second, and then turned back to the mage.

"Actually, if you ignore the entire mage-hating situation, it's pretty easy. King Jarvan's throne is located in the Palace of Dawn. All you have to do is go north, you will definitely know the building when you see it."

"I see. Well, it's been a pleasure meeting you, Ez-" Ryze joked, making the boy clench his fists and teeth for a moment. "-Jarro. May our paths cross again someday."

As he said those words, he stood up from the table and got ready to leave. However, a laugh from the blonde boy made him stop in his tracks.

"Wait a second… you're not really trying to go there right now, are you?" he asked, smiling from ear-to-ear. However, when he saw Ryze's serious expression, the smile disappeared almost immediately. "You are? Holy crap, you're actually nuts!"

"What do you mean?" Ryze said.

"I'm not trying to sound offensive, but you're several light years away from looking like a regular person. As soon as one of the guards sees you, they'll know you are a mage. And although I hate to admit it, there are currently many more Demacians who despise mages just as much as Craig, and could blow your cover easily. So unless you're trying to murder half the population of Demacia, you're not getting to the palace at this time of day."

As much as Ryze hated to admit it, Ezreal was right. If he wanted to get to the king without causing a commotion or hurting someone, doing it stealthily or at night was his best option. Unfortunately, Ryze didn't have that much time.

"I'm afraid I don't have the luxury of waiting until then. If I have to sneak my way to the palace, then I will do it." said the mage.

"It's not that easy. To reach the palace, you'd have to get through the Grand Plaza unnoticed. And sadly, that's impossible under current conditions."

"I believe I'm skilled enough to find a way through with my magic."

"I wouldn't rely on that either, if I were you. Spells and charms are a non-factor here. With the amount of petricite that was used to build those buildings, I doubt your magic would be of any use."

With every single world Ezreal said, Ryze began to feel more and more hopeless. He might have been one of the most powerful mages in the world, but not even he could overcome the effects of petricite. And unfortunately for him, teleportation was simply too risky.

"What am I supposed to do then? I'm running out of time, so waiting for the sun to set is out of the question. Is there no other way to get in?" Ryze asked, desperate to find a better way to reach the king.

"I don't know. It's a bit ironic, but Demacia is one of the few places I haven't fully explored yet, so I don't know any other way to get there," the explorer said, as an expression of excitement suddenly lightened up his face. "Actually, I'm just pulling your leg. We're going right now."

"Wait a second… are you serious?"

"Absolutely. I know a girl who's… pretty _bright_ when it comes to sneaking around," Ezreal replied.

The mage, however, wasn't going to be convinced so easily. He'd already talked to more people than he had originally planned, and alerting more people of his presence would just lead to unnecessary conflicts.

"Are you sure getting other people involved is a good idea?" he asked, and Ezreal answered with a reassuring nod.

"I mean, it's our best shot. Knowing her, she won't ask too many questions. And even if she does, I can take care of it fairly easily," the boy said, as he leaned in closer to Ryze. _"She's totally into me."_

With those words, the boy slowly stood up from the table and gestured towards the door.

"Let's get going."

"I only have one more question," the mage said. "Why are you helping me? You have no reason to solve my problems for me, so… why do you care?"

At first, Ezreal just stood silently, trying to think of a suitable answer to Ryze's question. A moment later, he simply shrugged his shoulders and let out a quiet laugh.

"Honestly, I have nothing better to do at the moment. And missing out on an adventure like this… isn't really my style of doing things," he told Ryze, who then also stood up from the table with a determined look on his face.

"I'm glad to hear that," he said. "Lead the way, explorer."

Ezreal happily rushed ahead of Ryze, grinning like a child who just found a bag of sweets. Before he opened the door, however, the boy looked back at the mage once again.

"What's your name, by the way?"

"Ryze. The rune mage."

Ezreal nodded his head with a smirk flashed across his face and opened the tavern door, only to see Craig standing in his way. He instinctively backed up a bit, while Ryze secretly conjured a tiny orb of energy in his hand, just in case things went wrong.

"Hey, Craig... uh… I had a _really deep talk_ with the guy, and don't worry, he won't bother you anymore! Ain't that right, mage?"

"You have my word," Ryze replied with humility and a sharp curve in his smile.

Without a word, Craig just stared at them with a threatening scowl. There was no way to tell what he was capable of, or how far he'd go just to get rid of Ryze... however, there was a bit of uncertainty still lingering in his eyes.

"Since you're a good friend of mine, Jarro, I'll let you off the hook," Craig suddenly said, not having even blinked a single time, as he took out the petricite dagger he had used against Ryze before. "But as for you, mage, things won't be _that_ easy."

Before Ryze could respond, the sound of loud, coordinated footsteps filled the street. When he turned to the source of those footsteps, he noticed a battalion of lightly armored soldiers stretched across the entire street, running towards them at a surprisingly high speed.

"I'm afraid I won't be able to hold back that many soldiers without casualties. What do we do?"

"Oh, I don't know, how about this?" Ezreal replied, as he turned around and dashed away from the incoming army as fast as he could. "I'LL PAY FOR THE DRINK LATER, CRAIG!"

Ryze immediately dispelled the orb in his hand and followed suit, only barely keeping up with the blonde boy's momentum. Back at the tavern, Craig gestured the guards to stop, as they watched the two get further and further away. Soon, they disappeared in one of the alleys, leaving no traces behind.

"What's the matter, commander? It's obviously the mage you were talking about," one of the soldiers said, but Craig wasn't listening. Instead, he was upset by what one of his closest friends had just done.

"So they're… acquaintances?" Craig said in a disappointed tone, as he put his weapon away and looked back at his subordinate. "Change of orders, soldier. I want both the mage _and_ Jarro Lightfeather arrested on sight."

"But sir, we'll lose them if we stay here!"

Hearing the soldier's reply, a victorious smirk flashed across Craig's face, as he recalled his first encounter with Ryze.

"We won't. I know where they are headed, after all."

* * *

An unbearably long amount of time had passed since the two fled Craig's tavern, and exhaustion from all the running had begun to take its toll. Demacia city was surprisingly large, and navigating through the streets and alleys felt like getting out of a labyrinth. The explorer suddenly decided to take a break, and with no guide to follow, Ryze also stopped to give his lungs a well-deserved break.

"What's the matter, grandpa? You tired?" Ezreal asked Ryze, who was breathing heavily with one hand placed on his chest.

"I probably shouldn't rely on my teleportation too much…" he said, as he slowly leaned sat down and leaned on a nearby wall. "There didn't use to be _this much_ petricite in the city. Sure, there were tons of it before, too, but this is on a whole another level."

As soon as he heard the mage's question, Ezreal's grin shifted downward and an unusual gloom filled his pupils.

"So... you haven't heard yet?" he asked.

Ryze shrugged his shoulders, and became even more interested after noticing the sudden shift in the boy's tone.

"Only bits and pieces, but… I figured they wouldn't translate to the entire story."

With a heavy sigh, Ezreal gave up. He sat down next to Ryze, staring blankly at the pavement before them.

"Demacia is… in a war," he uttered, his voice seeming weaker than before.

"A war? I knew Noxus was going to eventually make a move, but-" Ryze began, but got immediately interrupted by Ezreal.

"This conflict has nothing to do with Noxus. Demacia is fighting… against itself."

As the last words left Ezreal's mouth, the mage could easily sense the pain in the boy's voice. Even despite that, he was still very interested in the issue.

"And that means…?"

Ezreal forced a short laugh. He lifted a pebble from the ground and began tossing it from one hand to the other, in order to try to get his mind away from the topic.

"That's obvious. Demacians fight Demacians. Best friends become enemies. Families get separated. Regular people murder mages while mages murder regular people. It's not even a civil war, it's just… a massacre."

"Interesting..." Ryze replied, and Ezreal clenched his fists at the response.

"No, it's not _interesting_. It's pointless. When either party wins, the other one tries to settle the score... and if the cycle continues, the war will _never_ be over," he said, grabbing the pebble with his gauntlet and tossing it as far as he could in frustration. "...but those idiots are too blind to actually see that."

There was a short moment of silence between the two, before Ryze decided to lift himself up. He looked at Ezreal's gauntlet for a second, and then turned around and started to slowly walk away from the boy.

"Why do you bother yourself with the situation if you can't do anything to solve it?"

Ezreal jumped to his feet, and caught up to the mage almost immediately. "I can! I'm sure there's a way. I just... haven't figured it out yet."

"Then how about I help you find one?" Ryze said, taking the explorer by surprise. The boy's face lit up with genuine excitement and happiness, as the mage continued: "my quest will soon be over either way. With so much time on my hands, I would be glad to be of assistance in the matter."

"Well, in that case... let's show them," said Ezreal, stretching out his gauntleted hand. Ryze nodded his head with a smirk as the two shook hands.

For the following few minutes, the two continued to navigate the Demacian streets, avoiding every living being they found on their way. Thankfully, they didn't have to enter any open area on their way, and the back alleys were usually mostly empty. Ezreal had a strangely wide grin plastered on his face the entire time, his elation only growing further and further as they got closer to their destination.

"Okay... this is it," he suddenly said, stretching out his arm to stop the mage. "Gaze upon the most _disgusting_ piece of architecture in all of Demacia."

In front of them stood a building only slightly taller than the surrounding houses. However, it stuck out thanks to an enormous golden emblem plastered on the front wall and a set of long flags hanging from the walls. They were all colored in blue, white and yellow, waving in the wind as the embodiment of Demacian justice and might. Although it was a spectacular sight, Ezreal kept staring at the building with disgust.

"Ugh... who had the _perfect_ idea to hire that architect?"

"'The house Crownguard?' Are you absolutely sure one of the Crownguards would be willing to help us?" the mage questioned, only to get a reassuring nod from Ezreal.

"Don't be a wimp," Ezreal said, patting the mage on his shoulder. Ryze opened his mouth to speak up, but quickly reminded himself not to take the boy seriously. Ezreal replied with an "I thought so" look, as he knocked on the door heavily with his gauntlet.

"There shouldn't be anyone home at the moment, except for-"

The doors suddenly burst open with a loud creak, making Ezreal jump back in surprise. He instinctively readied his gauntlet and aimed it at the opening doors, prompting Ryze to stay alert too.

For a while, there was complete silence. In the doorway stood a young woman, staring at the two with a questioning glare. Her blonde hair descended past her shoulders to her back, with a silver headband holding it firmly in place. She was covered in armor made of pure demacian steel, a signature choice for the city's nobility. All of a sudden, a warm grin flashed across her face, just as Ezreal lowered his gauntlet calmly.

"JARRO!" she yelled in a loud, high-pitched voice, as she lunged forward and threw her arms around the explorer's shoulders. "Oh my god, it's been ages!"

 _"Hey babe. How's it hangin'?"_ Ezreal said in a raspy tone, only for the girl to let go of him and shake her head slightly.

"That was... horrible. Don't ever do it again."

"Okay, as long as you say so!" Ezreal laughed, softly caressing the girl's warm cheek with his uncovered hand. The girl closed her eyes and smiled, taking a deep breath and letting herself enjoy the moment. After a short while, she opened her eyes again, only to notice Ryze in the corner of her eye, staring at them with a content smirk. The gleam in her eyes slowly vanished along with her smile, and Ezreal stepped in between the two as quickly as he could.

"And now... the awkward part. Lux, this is Ryze. Ryze, this is Luxanna Crownguard, one of the best friends I could ever hope to have," he said, but the girl only stared blankly at the mage. There was both horror and anger present in her expression, making the explorer doubt his decision to ask her for help. "Lux, is... is there something wrong?"

"Get inside. Right now."

The girl grabbed the boy's hand an pulled him along into the building, taking both him and the mage by surprise. Ryze found it incredibly adorable and decided to stay behind, watching the two youngsters from afar. However, Lux stopped in her tracks and looked back, gesturing the mage to come along with her.

"You too, blue guy! RIGHT NOW!" she shouted at Ryze, who immediately but reluctantly followed suit, closing the large set of doors behind them and leaving the alley silent once again.

* * *

The two men sat on a cozy couch, speechlessly waiting for the girl to return. Ezreal nervously bit his lip and stared at the expensive-looking coffee table in front of him, while the mage rummaged through the bag containing his belongings. After a few minutes of silence, Lux returned with three cups of tea and carefully placed them on the table, taking a seat opposite of the two. Instead of her armor, she was now wearing a more comfortable-looking white dress, unintentionally grabbing all of Ezreal's attention.

"I don't want to turn you in. I really don't. So I'm giving you one minute to explain why you brought that mage here," she said, grabbing one of the cups and comfortably resting her head on the armchair. "Your minute starts now."

Ezreal opened his mouth to speak but Ryze instantly stopped him with a gesture of his hand. He then reached into his bag and pulled out an irregularly shaped object covered in sheets. Even through the several layers of rags it pulsated with a bright cyan light, shining brighter than the sunbeams illuminating the room through the windows. Ryze then pulled the rags off, revealing a clear crystal with an alien symbol carved into it. There were a few tiny cracks disrupting its smooth surface, but the item still seemed to be in near-perfect condition.

"Well that's new," Ezreal said, keeping his eyes on the crystal. He reached out his hand to touch it, but Ryze quickly stopped it with his own.

"Don't touch it, no matter what happens."

Lux, however, wasn't as amazed by the crystal as Ezreal was. Even despite being further away from it, she could still feel a vast amount of magic contained within the crystal walls, ready to break out at a moment's notice.

"What... is that thing?" she asked, looking at the object with concern and fear.

"I can sense that you're different. You're a mage too, aren't you, Luxanna?" Ryze told her, carefully placing the crystal on the table. "You feel all the power contained within this thing, don't you?"

"Why would you bring such a thing to Demacia?" Lux said, also reaching out her hand to try and grab it. Fortunately, Ryze took it from the table just in time and put it back in his bag, making sure it's properly sealed off.

"I can't destroy it without endangering the lives of innocent people. The only thing I can do safely is seal it away... and in order to do that, I need to talk to your king. I'm not forcing you to help me. I just want you to know that if you don't, people will suffer. There will be more casualties than you will ever be able to count."

For a while, Lux sat frozen still without uttering a word. She looked over at Ezreal with a worried look, and the boy gave her a reassuring nod.

"Please, Lux. You're our only hope," Ezreal said, but the girl gave no response. Instead, she lifted herself up from the couch and walked towards a nearby wall. Taking a deep breath, she gave it a quick push, making the wall open up as if it were a set of doors. Behind it was a long corridor, devouring the incoming daylight in its darkness. Ryze got up with an excited smirk, as Ezreal continued to watch in awe.

"I'm starting to love your house," added the boy.

"This is most certainly not the safest route, but it's probably the fastest," Lux said, "If you walk for a few minutes through this tunnel, you'll eventually enter the sewers. After that, continue upstream and you'll be beneath the palace in no time. However, when you enter, you'll be on your own. I can't provide you with accurate directions to reach the king."

"You've done way more than I ever would have thought. Thank you so much," said the rune mage happily, taking a step forward into the shadows. Before disappearing, he gave Lux a heartwarming smile, which she returned.

"Please... don't make me regret my decision, Ryze," she replied, receiving a reaffirming nod from the man.

"I won't. I promise."

With those words, the rune mage slowly disappeared in the darkness of the tunnel, taking the glowing crystal out of his bag once again. Thankfully, it worked fairly well as a temporary torch, as it cut through the darkness with its blinding glow. Smiling to himself, he waved at Ezreal to follow him, to which he immediately got up from the couch.

"I owe you one," the explorer said, pulling Lux into a quick hug. After letting her go, he immediately dashed away after the rune mage, waving at the girl with his gauntleted hand. "See you later, sparkle!"

"Good luck!" Lux said, but the two were already too far in the tunnel to actually hear her. Waving goodbye one last time, she pulled the wall back to its original place and carefully hid all the traces of Ryze ever being in the building.

"...you're going to need it."

* * *

 _A/N: Ayy it's ya boi SiRoLoL, also known as the guy who was too lazy to update this story for half a year. Yeah, there's no point in making an excuse, I didn't update this story mostly because I haven't really been enjoying writing after publishing the prologue, and writing this chapter felt like something I HAD to do and not something I WANTED to do. However, that changed this week, because I've been having an absolute blast as soon as I picked up this chapter again after a while. Guess you just have to push through the beginning to get to the enjoyable part *shrug*_

 _So yeah, sorry for the extra late update, but we're back on track! I'm not sure whether I'll update regularly from now on (I'm pretty inconsistent with my updates, if you haven't noticed already :3 ), but I'll try to do my best. Also sorry for every mistake I made in this chapter, I occasionally write dialogue ahead of everything else and then forget to add the 'everything else'._

 _Now, not to make this A/N too long, I'd like to thank you all for reading this chapter. If you enjoyed it please leave a fave or a follow, and if you didn't, don't forget to roast me in the reviews :D If you have some constructive criticism, be sure to criticize as much as you want, because it helps me make the following chapters better and improve both as an author and an English speaker. You can also leave me a PM, I'm happy for any and every form of feedback!_

 _Thanks for giving this story a chance, and stay tuned for the next chapter!_

* * *

 **TO BE CONTINUED IN:**

 **Chapter Two**

 **Up The Drain Pipe**


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

 **Up the Drain Pipe**

* * *

If their light source wasn't so bright, Ryze would have already fallen asleep. The two had been wandering through the endlessly boring tunnels for several minutes, which began to seem like hours to the rune mage. However, unlike Ryze, the explorer managed to find their journey enjoyable. He would occasionally try to look for things in the repeating brick patterns on the walls, smiling like a maniac the entire time. The two didn't really spend a lot of time talking, except for the occasional failed attempt at a joke by Ezreal and Ryze's futile efforts to cast a spoken spell in the petricite-littered area.

When the two were nearing their first hour in the tunnels, the crystal began to glow even brighter than before, making the mage concerned about their safety. Before he could try anything, the object began trembling violently, with many new cracks cutting its surface like butter. As soon as magic began to leak through the cracks, Ryze stopped walking and immediately opened his backpack.

"Okay, time's up. You're going back in the bag, buddy," Ryze proclaimed, inserting the crystal into his bag. Before Ezreal was able to react, the azure light vanished, allowing the tunnel's shadows to engulf them in their nothingness.

"Hey, that's not your buddy, that's our torch! We can't continue in the dark, pull it out!"

"This is the better option," the mage said, forcing a laugh. "The last time this rune shook... the earth began to shake with it."

For a while, the Explorer couldn't find the proper words to express his thoughts. The idea of such a tiny object being able to bend the earth itself was terrifying... and yet, somewhat mesmerizing at the same time.

"You know, I've been wondering this before, but... that 'rune' thing looks a _tiny_ bit unstable," he told the mage.

"Oh, you haven't the _faintest idea_ how dangerous it is."

"So... why do you have one with you?"

Ezreal's question took Ryze by surprise, even though he knew he would eventually have to give the boy a proper explanation. Reluctantly, he started blindly walking forward.

"Do you remember... what happened when I first showed you and Lux the rune? Back in the Crownguards' house?" he asked Ezreal. Although it took the boy a while to dig up the memory, he managed to find what he was looking for.

"I think I... tried to touch it," he replied, while questioning his own actions.

"So did Lux. And so did everyone else who I showed it to."

"Okay, now this is just creepy. Very creepy," said Ezreal, followed by a groan of frustration. "The memory is there, I just... can't recall _why_ I did it, no matter how hard I try."

"It's completely normal, don't worry. Living beings tend to gravitate towards the runes, even if I warn them prior to taking out the rune. But everything is fine as long as the person doesn't actually touch the crystal," Ryze explained, but Ezreal was already too invested in the topic to just let it be.

"And if that were the case... what happens next?"

Suddenly, Ryze froze. He knew the question would come up eventually… but somewhere deep down in his soul, he had hoped it would not. His eyes and the markings on his body began to glow in a magical purplish light, even despite the unnecessarily high amounts of petricite surrounding them. He had 0wandered off too far back into the past and was forced to witness chaos again, exactly how he remembered it.

"Your brain becomes one with the world rune. You forget that useless things like emotions, rationality and morality ever existed, while the rune replaces them with a new, _darker_ set of priorities. You lose the ability to think freely and become a one man slaughter machine, murdering everything in your path and leveling entire continents just to satisfy your need for blood and destruction. Armies will fall and cities will crumble by your hand, as your magic slowly rips all life out of existence. You will have become… apocalypse itself."

"That was… _very_ detailed. And also pretty poetic, I'm genuinely amazed!" said Ezreal. "And also pretty freaked out, but mostly amazed."

"There's no need to freak out. As long as I've got the world runes safely sealed away, they won't pose any threat to this world."

The mage then began to feel the presence of runic magic sluggishly fading from the area. In response, he unpacked the crystal once again, showing it to the boy in its former, stable state. Although he was still holding it in a piece of cloth, Ezreal could see that some of the cracks had been closed up, making the rune appear much safer (which was, however, not the case). He subconsciously reached for it, but Ryze gave him a nudge with his elbow as soon as he noticed. The explorer silently gasped and pulled his hand back, stepping away from Ryze to escape the rune's influence.

"Crap, it happened again! How have you not succumbed to their power after all this time?" asked Ezreal. He continued to keep his distance from the mage, reminding himself to pull back if he as much as laid his eyes upon the rune.

"Only I have the power to let go. The attempts to pull on my strings are definitely there, but… they have never managed to properly grasp one," Ryze replied as he shook the crystal in his hand, prompting it to light up once again. "Here we go. Flashlight mode… ON!"

"Ladies and gentlemen, we're back in business!" Ezreal said joyfully, as he darted towards the darkness before them.

Ryze didn't even bother stopping him, since the explorer was way too quick for him to catch up. The two continued to walk along the narrow underground passages, which only became more and more boring as time went on. There wasn't a single word spoken between the two, and Ezreal even went as far as to always keep his distance from the mage, exploring in the darkness several meters ahead of him.

Eventually, Ryze began to question whether giving Ezreal a proper explanation was a good idea. He would see hints of shock and fear in the boy's eyes every time he turned around, filling him with a strangely bitter uneasiness. Was he wrong for trying to change his ways? Should he have continued to spend his days in solitude and let the runes haunt him for the rest of his life? Was he really doomed to never find peace?

Before the grimmest of his thoughts could resurface, however, he was warped back to reality by the sound of Ezreal's voice.

"Ew, why is it so _squishy_ and _slushy_ and… oh crap," Ryze heard him say, immediately speeding up in response.

"Ezreal! What's wrong?" he yelled into the tunnels, and was delighted to see Ezreal still standing and looking at him with that dumb expression on his face.

"It's not what it looks like, I swear! He was already dead when I stepped on his ribcage!"

"When you _what_?"

As soon as Ryze came closer, his eyes widened in surprise. The explorer was standing next to a rotting corpse, with his foot buried deep inside the body's chest. Even despite the person's decaying face, the corpse could most certainly be identified as a man, due to a scruffy beard covering his chin. It was coated in dry blood, just like the man's fancy armor, making it obvious that he'd been there for a _very_ long time.

"I didn't mean to! It was dark and I-" Ezreal began, but got interrupted by Ryze before he could explain himself.

"Wow, that looks _disgusting_. Smells even worse!" he said, placing one of his feet on the dead person's armored stomach. "Try pulling it out now."

Nodding his head, the boy pulled his leg one more time, breaking a few more of the dead man's ribs and successfully releasing his leg from their grasp. Not expecting the leg to be pulled out so easily, he tumbled backwards and fell on his back with a loud thud.

"Thanks. I owe you this one, grandpa," he told Ryze, grabbing the mage's hand and lifting himself back up on his feet.

"You're welcome, kid," Ryze teased back, placing one of his hands on Ezreal's shoulder. The boy replied with a warm smile, before the mage turned away and kneeled down to inspect the armored corpse. "So, in summary, we've just found a dead guy in the tunnels that were, supposedly, a secret passage from the Crownguard House to the sewers. And in my book, none of this seems to add up."

"That's not what I'd be worried about," Ezreal chuckled nervously. "Do you see the armor the dead guy's wearing?"

Ryze took a while to slowly scan the corpse with his eyes. No matter how much he tried, he didn't seem to notice anything familiar on the armor. The patterns looked like something a regular Demacian footman would wear, and the occasional petricite filling was to be expected due to the current situation in the city-state. The only thing he found strange were round blue gems decorating certain parts of the armor, but he couldn't quite connect them to an answer.

"Yes. What of it?" he asked.

"Every Demacian out there can recognize this set of armor on first glance. Even prisoners who haven't seen the light of day for decades would be able to tell that this guy was a member of the 'Dauntless Vanguard'."

The Dauntless Vanguard… oh yes, Ryze had heard that name before. While the armor may not have been well known in other parts of the world, the name itself was pretty famous. The Dauntless Vanguard was an elite Demacian troop, comprised of highly trained and the most skilled individuals in the entire country. As the most influential military unit in Demacia, the Vanguard was feared and respected in all of Valoran.

"Well… that's a surprising development, but it doesn't change anything."

"It does, actually. These guys are _the_ elite. Not a lot of people are foolish enough to take on the mightiest of the mightiest in Demacia. The only people who regularly try to fight these guys are those who don't have to rely on melee combat to win," Ezreal explained, and this time, Ryze finally understood.

"The mages?" he asked confidently, receiving a nod from the boy.

"Exactly. And, coincidentally, all the mages who are freed by the resistance eventually end up in the sewers. In any case, just stay alert and be ready to face some of the rebels, or even worse, Sy-"

Ezreal suddenly stopped mid-sentence, aiming his gauntlet into the darkness ahead. Not having time to focus, the explorer charged it and blindly fired a magical projectile into the shadows. The shot traveled a long amount of distance at insane speed, shining its bright light at everything in its path before disappearing. For a very brief moment, the boy managed to spot a shadow in the light, prompting him to ready his weapon once again.

"We come in peace. No one's going to get hurt as long as you keep your distance," Ezreal said, and for a while, there was complete silence. After that, they heard an unnerving laugh coming from the shadow's direction, which made Ryze conjure an orb of energy in his hand. However, much to the rune mage's dismay, the magic vaporized in an instant, likely because of the petricite surrounding them.

"Stand down, boy. You're not the reason I'm here," a cold, deep voice replied from the tunnel, followed by the sound of footsteps. As the thuds slowly became louder, Ryze could see Ezreal's hand begin to shake nervously. "Oh, hey… you're Jarro Lightfeather, aren't you?"

Following those words, a figure stepped out of the shadows. The explorer immediately aimed his gauntlet at the person's face, but he seemed to pay the threat no attention. He wore nothing but a pair of pants, and his wrists had long, heavy chains attached to them, making Ezreal wonder how he could walk at such speed. In his blue, piercing eyes, Ryze saw a repressed desire for revenge, cultivated by the man's worst experiences and slowly built up over years of suffering. However, the mage was also certain that they weren't the target of the man's revenge.

"Sylas of Dregbourne," Ezreal said, slowly lowering his weapon. "You must be the criminal Lux told me about!"

"Criminal, huh? As far as I'm concerned, you're also wanted up there. You've been deemed a threat per request of my favorite Demacian general, Craig Anderson," Sylas replied, as a glint of sorrow flashed across the explorer's face.

"Craig? No, he… he wouldn't. I'm not going to believe anything you say, you murderous piece of-" the explorer quickly readied his gauntlet again, only to be halted by Ryze's hand.

"I know that you're upset, but you must never let your emotions win you over. Take your time, I'll deal with this guy myself," Ryze said, and Ezreal reluctantly turned around, trying his best not to fire the shot and blow Sylas' head off.

As soon as Ezreal calmed down, Ryze patted him on the shoulder and stared down Sylas, who hadn't moved an inch since he last saw him.

"As one of my undercover agents reported, when Craig Madman reported to the king, he mentioned two people: Jarro Lightfeather, and a mage. So if I make the most logical assumption… you must be the mage," Sylas told Ryze, offering the rune mage a handshake. "I'm Sylas. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

Instead of accepting the offer, Ryze hesitated. In his heart, he truly wanted to trust the dark-haired man, but there was a strangely ominous aura surrounding him. As their hands came closer to each other, Ryza tried to tap into Sylas' magic to see its true nature… and immediately pulled back.

"You can sense my powers, can't you?" Ryze asked Sylas, who was visibly taken aback.

"What made you come to such a conclusion?"

"Because I can sense yours too, Sylas. Stealing other people's powers… it's a very powerful ability that only the best of mages can use efficiently. Sorry for disappointing you, but I don't think I'm willing to risk this handshake yet."

For a second, Sylas stared blankly at the rune mage, his eyes and mouth wide open. Even Ezreal was pleasantly surprised as he watched the situation unfold from a distance.

"Disappointed? Actually, it's quite the contrary. You've just read me like an open book. That's not something I see happen everyday. I'm impressed," Sylas said, his expression becoming a warm smile which Ryze thought he would never see. "In that case, let's save this handshake for another time… when I'll have properly earned it."

Hearing the answer, an idea popped into Ryze's mind. A horrible idea; one that could have gone wrong way too easily… but in Ryze's mind, the stakes were already high enough. For him, there was no issue with putting even more on the line, especially if it could lead them to the king faster.

"There might be a way to… slightly speed up that process," he said. Sylas's expression switched to a more serious side, and he focused all of his senses at the mage.

"I'm listening."

"Take us to the throne room, and my powers could be yours," Ryze told Sylas, whose eyes lit up like the spark of a firework. "Temporarily, of course."

There was no moment of hesitation for the criminal. He nodded his head in an instant, stretching his hand out again. Ryze didn't immediately shake his hand, but even despite his brain telling him to back off, there was no denying that it was their best option so far. He tried to shake Sylas' hand, but Ezreal suddenly reappeared out of nowhere and grabbed his arm, clutching it tightly to keep it away from the man's reach.

"Hold it, Ryze! Are you crazy? Don't trust that murderer!" Sylas slightly flinched at the word, but regained his composure and approached the explorer.

"I wouldn't call myself a murderer… I prefer the term 'freedom fighter', to be frank," he said, his face forming a hateful scowl directed at the explorer. "Now get out of my way."

"'Freedom fighter' my ass. You pretend to be a hero, but you disregard the lives of innocent people just as much as the mage seekers! How does that make you any better, you hypocritical piece of-" Ezreal began, charging up his weapon and getting ready to blast the magical projectile right between Sylas' eyes. Much to his surprise, however, Ryze suddenly spun out of his tight grip and immediately grabbed the criminal's hand with his free arm, completing the handshake Ezreal had interrupted before.

Ezreal screamed an earsplitting "NO!" that went on to echo throughout the tunnels for a long while, but Sylas didn't even move an inch. He stood petrified in place, his eyes wandering between Ryze's look of determination and their connected hands. He felt the rune mage's aura entering his veins, quickly filling up every single nook and cranny of his body with immense, unimaginably potent power. He felt as if he was reborn; with so much power in his hands, he could bust out of the petricite tomb and annihilate every enemy who ever tried to stop him or his allies. He could conquer the world by himself; an unstoppable juggernaut of pure magical energy just waiting to be unleashed, sweeping through the land like an unstoppable wildfire. Even the stars suddenly came closer than they had ever been before; with such tremendous power, he would surely be able to grasp the heavens and soar through the endless skies until-

He felt his heartbeat come to a halt. He tried to take a breath, but it felt as if the magic itself had sucked the air dry. His vision became blurry and the outlines of Ryze and Jarro Lightfeather began to merge into something... _monstrous_. His body started trembling from sudden, unexpected surges of excruciating pain, spreading through his body and limbs like a freshly mutated virus. His lips began moving on their own, as his body might have realized that screaming made the suffering way easier to handle. Desperate, he even tried to cut the flow of magic, but it was no good. The magic continued to flow on its own, constantly overflowing what were supposed to be his limits and reaching heights it would have never reached naturally.

Sylas was well-aware of what was happening. Although he could still feel additional magic making its way into his veins, he knew that if he kept on holding Ryze's hand any longer, he would meet his demise long before he would even begin to use up his newly absorbed power. Before his body could get painfully torn up from the inside, he let go of the rune mage's hand, his mind warping back to the petricite-filled underground. He shot Ryze a shocked glance, and the mage stared back with a content smug on his face. He must've known the entire time.

"How does your body even... withstand that much power?" he asked Ryze, struggling to keep standing on his own two feet. The magic wasn't gone, so his body was still in immense pain, but at least it wasn't entering his insides anymore.

"Oh, and you've only began to scratch the surface," Ryze said, as he approached Sylas and helped him get back up. "Now uphold your end of the deal and get us to the king."

Without a moment of hesitation, Sylas weakly nodded his head, his breathing still heavy from before. He pointed his finger forward, giving Ryze and Ezreal a direction to follow. They slowly continued on the path, the rune mage helping Sylas move forward while Ezreal just slowly walked behind them, still trying to process what he had just witnessed. No matter how much he tried to forget the image of Sylas twitching in pain while screaming his lungs out, it kept on reappearing in his head, as if his concerns about the world rune weren't haunting enough. At one point, he even began to question whether he should have really followed Ryze instead of letting him get captured or killed.

What concerned him even more, however, was the fact that when Sylas recovered, there was no saying what would happen next. After spending years in the petricite-littered Demacian prison, his body could handle it way better than Ryze's, and he would be able to make full use of the magic even within Demacia's walls.

If he had really absorbed even a fraction of Ryze's power, then he would eventually become, at least for a brief moment...

 _Unstoppable_.

* * *

 _A/N: Hey everyone, guess who's back with a new chapter! I had planned to get it done in a week... and I failed. But hey, at least it wasn't an entire year again ;)  
_

 _I've really enjoyed writing this chapter... mostly. There were a few times when I got legitimately stuck and had no idea how to continue writing (for example the part where Sylas absorbed Ryze's power), but I think the extra time I took was really worth it. I always thought of Sylas as a fairly flexible character that can be both a hero and a villain, depending on your point of view... which I obviously thought was an interesting idea to work with. So I really hope you guys don't mind him interrupting the story at this point, because there's probably going to be a lot more of him in the upcoming chapters. I tend to both hit and miss when it comes to writing, and I sort of think this might have been a miss for some people... if that's the case, then I'm really sorry. On the other hand, no popular stories have ever gone 100% according to plan, so... yay, i guess!  
_

 _This chapter was initially supposed to be a lot longer, but I just couldn't resist ending it at that last line. Fortunately for you all, I'm already in the writing mood, so I might get a huge portion of the next chapter done right now and get the next chapter released even sooner! (Even though my update schedule is a very bad joke at this point)_

 _Once again, I'd like to thank y'all for reading this cringy story that should have never seen the light of day. But it's probably too late for that,_ _so let's just roll with it now lul._

 _I'd also like to give a special thanks to everyone who faved, followed and reviewed. I wanted to reply to your reviews sooner, but I wanted to get this done earlier so... I guess it was worth it._

 _And with that, I'm out. Hope y'all enjoyed, and stay tuned for the next one!_

* * *

 **TO BE CONTINUED IN:**

 **Chapter Three**

 **The Throne of Justice**


	4. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

 **The Throne of Justice**

* * *

Just as Ryze had expected, Sylas' help had really proved useful. As soon as they reached the sewers, he lead them to a hidden passage they would have never noticed by themselves. While Ezreal was reluctant to follow them at first, he eventually gave in and ignored his instincts for the first time in his life. There, they found a ladder leading to a higher floor of the sewers, which seemed like a great step forward. Unable to climb the ladder on his own, the two had to struggle for a while to get Sylas up there safely before they could continue with their journey. It definitely would have helped if the guy didn't have those heavy chains still attached to his wrists, but thankfully, the added weight was mostly unnoticeable.

From that point on, the way to the palace was just as boring and tedious as it gets. Ezreal refused to talk because of Sylas' presence, Sylas couldn't talk due to exhaustion, and Ryze wasn't very good at keeping a conversation going anyway. Since the explorer refused to help Sylas walk, Ryze had to carefully help him with one hand while holding the rune in the other. Thankfully, even the rune was bored by the sewers, and it stayed stabilized all the way to their destination.

Eventually, Sylas managed to get up on his own feet, and although it was slower than it should have been, he managed to keep walking on his own. Ezreal kept his eyes on the man the entire time, keeping his gauntlet charged in case he tried to attack one of them. Finally being able to exist on his own, Sylas spoke up to disrupt the unnerving silence.

"That thing in your hand..." he began, and Ryze immediately raised his finger as a warning sign.

"A world rune. Very dangerous. Don't touch it."

Sylas laughed, still weakened by the magic, and heeded the warning with a nod of his head. Even from a distance, he could feel the rune's tremendous magic power, which was also uncomfortably close to releasing itself from the crystal's hold. He felt it calling him, pulling on his nerves like a fishing hook and trying to grasp his mind and pull him closer. For what reason, he didn't know; but it wasn't nearly powerful enough to win him over. At times, it even felt as if Ryze's magic somehow blocked it from clouding his mind and forcing him to touch it.

"I wasn't trying to touch it. I've had enough of your power for today," he said, only for Ezreal to let out a sigh of disappointment.

" _You don't have to tell him everything,_ " the explorer scoffed under his breath, but purposely loud enough for Sylas to hear it. The chained mage turned around and placed a hand on Ezreal's shoulder, which made the boy jump and aim the gauntlet direcly at his face. Even though Sylas showed no hostility, Ezreal kept his guard up, not letting the charge of his weapon vanish yet.

"Jarro... you have no idea how close I am to collapsing right here. And I can feel that there's _way_ more power in that thing than Ryze will ever have. I'm not dumb enough to actually touch it. So stop being annoying and just walk," he said, feeling the anger building up in the explorer's heart. It was completely unreasonable at the moment, and yet it felt real and genuine.

"That's not for you to decide, Sylas! If the rune grasps your mind, you won't win, no matter how tough you try to appear," Ezreal said, his fists clutched tightly. Ryze wanted to intervene, but he thought keeping the rune away from Ezreal was way more important.

"I'm not letting that stupid stone win me over. And neither should you," Sylas replied. As soon as Ezreal opened his mouth to speak up, however, the mage stopped him. "Oh, don't even bother trying to hide it. I know that you're not actually trying to warn me. You hate me because of what Luxanna told you, isn't that right?"

Upon hearing Lux's name, Ezreal pushed the gauntlet into Sylas' face, making the mage slightly flinch. He kept it there for a while, but no matter how uncomfortable it got, Sylas wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of winning anymore. With the little power he had, he grabbed the explorer's extended arm and swiftly twisted it, making him back off while still aiming directly at his face.

"I've seen what you do with my own eyes. Pieces of shit like you are one of the reasons Demacia is still stuck in this pointless civil war!" Ezreal yelled at Sylas, but this time, the criminal let go of his calm exterior and spoke what he truly had on his mind.

"Pointless, huh?" he began, grabbing the explorer by the collar of his shirt and pinning him to a nearby wall. He used his other hand to pin Ezreal's gauntleted hand too, giving the boy no chance to retaliate. "You haven't spent _nearly_ enough time in the mage prisons to tell me that I'm wrong! The things those bastards do to our kind... the enslavement, the humiliation, the torture, and _especially_ the petricite experiments. You have no right to judge us for doing what we do!"

As the tension between the two grew, Ryze turned around and pierced them with a look of pure annoyance. After seeing the rune mage's face, their bickering began to slowly fade into thin air, until only a trace of disdain remained.

"That's enough, you two. There will be time for this later. Let's focus on getting to the throne room first."

"You're right," said Ezreal, and Sylas nodded his head in agreement. The stronger man let go of the boy, intentionally dropping him to the ground without a warning. After falling down with a loud thud, Ezreal made sure to stretch his leg out before standing up, making the older man trip and nearly dive face-first into the hard rocky floor. Ryze just shook his head in disbelief, as he continued following the path Sylas chose.

For a few minutes, there was no word spoken between the three. And Ryze liked it that way; in his mind, it was probably for the better. The silence allowed him to focus on his thoughts more clearly and he also began to notice details he would have usually overlooked. He saw the walls becoming more narrow and drier, Ezreal keeping his gauntleted fist clenched, and he even noticed Sylas' breathing regaining its former rhythm... which made him both glad and concerned. He knew Sylas would eventually recover and be able to use the arcane magic coursing through his veins... he just wasn't expecting the criminal to recover so quickly.

All of a sudden, Sylas came to a halt. Ezreal pretended he didn't notice him stop and slammed into the mage with full force, almost knocking him over. The man then responded by giving Ezreal a look of pure hatred and anger, one that would have sent shivers down the explorer's spine even if there was an entire army separating the two. However, there was no need for Ezreal to back off, as Sylas decided to just shrug it off and turned around showing no interest.

"Looks like we've reached our destination. Welcome to the 'Citadel of Dawn', my dear customers!" said Sylas, spreading out his arms and striking an overly dramatic pose.

After hearing those words, both Ryze and Ezreal spent a full minute looking around the tunnel in an attempt to find an exit... but they were unsuccessful. The walls and ceiling looked no different from earlier, albeit a tiny bit wider. There was no sign of a secret door or a hatch, not even a secret passage like the one Sylas had shown them before. What made the sudden stop even weirder, was the fact that the tunnel continued to stretch even further forward, with a seemingly extensive distance until the end.

"Oh, how _spectacular_!" Ezreal replied, his tone overflowing with sarcasm. "Would have been even better if there was an actual entrance!"

Sylad frowned at the boy's remark and clenched his fists for a second, but quickly let it be. Just like Ryze, he finally figured out that the key to staying sane in Ezreal's presence was ignoring every word he said.

"That gauntlet of yours... you think it could bust through a thick marble wall lined with petricite?"

"'Course it would. It might be magical, but with enough effort, it can cut through solid petricite like butter. The destructive power of this baby is more than capable of shredding that wall of yours to nothing. Why do you want to-" Ezreal began. And he would have most likely continued to brag about his gauntlet's awesomeness, but Sylas' question suddenly started making sense. "Oh no. No no no, we're not doing that. There's no way we're doing that!"

"We're trying to get there without being noticed. That's actually why we took this route instead of going there directly. This is just too risky," Ryze said, only for Sylas to immediately wave his remark off.

"It's actually our best shot. Even if we do make a lot of noise, we're going to end up in the quietest section of the palace," the criminal said, and although it sounded fishy, the rune mage nodded in agreement. Sylas then pointed one of his chained hands at the ceiling and stared at the explorer, who was failing miserably at hiding his excited smirk. "So, Jarro... do the honors."

At first, although eager to destroy stuff, Ezreal hesitated. Just a few hours ago, things were different. He used to be Jarro Lightfeather; a Demacian man who had all the time in the world to enjoy and live his life on a high note. He even managed to meet an indescribably amazing noble girl and befriend one of the city-state's toughest generals. But... now that friendship was gone. And spending time with Lux also seemed way further from his reach than ever before. At that moment, Jarro Lightfeather would have backed off and obeyed the country's laws as best as he could. Maybe he could have apologized for his questionable decision, talked it out with Craig, and returned to his former life. Ryze's quest would have been over and Sylas would have done god-knows-what with his newly acquired power, but Jarro Lightfeather would pay that price gladly. Thankfully... that man, Jarro Lightfeather... that wasn't who he truly was.

Without any further hesitation, he approached Sylas. With a quick snap of his fingers, the gauntlet began powering up, emitting a light even brighter than the glow of Ryze's rune torch. Ezreal could feel his weapon sucking the surrounding air dry of the little bits of magic that weren't eradicated by petricite, becoming heavier as time went on. Eventually, the gauntlet stopped accepting energy altogether, leaving the explorer with a weapon more than capable of tearing through the ceiling.

"Under different circumstances, I wouldn't have listened to you. But passing up an opportunity to break into the Demacian palace? That's not like me."

With those words, the explorer pointed his gauntlet upward, as all of the harnessed destructive energy focused into his fingertips. However, before he could fire off the empowered projectile stored in his gauntlet, he felt a cold hand grab his wrist, holding it frozen in its spot. Just as he was about to try and fight against the inescapable grip, his arm was slowly moved to the left, and then let go.

"Your aim was a bit off," Sylas' voice reassured him from behind, giving the explorer a friendly pat on his shoulder. Then, for the first time since they had met, Ezreal showed the man a warm, genuine smile, which made Ryze very happy. However, there was still an unpleasant feeling in his gut, clouding his mind in images of all the things that could have gone wrong.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Ryze asked, but Ezreal let the projectile loose in an instant, making Sylas laugh in excitement.

Before Ryze managed to fully observe the bullet's shape, it had already collided with the ceiling, tearing right through as if it were a piece of paper. Naturally, the hit produced a loud, pervasive sound, which continued to echo throughout the unending sewers for several seconds before vanishing from existence.

"Oh, would you look at that! Sylas was actually right! There really _was_ an entrance all along!" the boy said, giving Ryze more than enough reasons to smack his palm against his forehead in response.

"Not bad for a douche like yourself," said Sylas, his grin lined with oddly sinister, yet somewhat genuine, happiness.

The criminal then shook off the last remains of Ryze's excess magic and threw his chains upward, easily attaching them to the floor and using them to climb up. Being pretty muscular, he then let the chains on his hands fall back down, allowing the two to grab the chains and get pulled up.

Ezreal found the ease with which he lifted the chains up to be impressive, but Ryze began feeling more anxious and uneasy the closer they got to the palace. Eventually, they were at the top and let the chains go, giving Sylas a long needed break

"We did it... we're actually in," Ezreal said, to which Ryze nodded and finally put his rune back in the bag. "Holy crap, we're actually in the Palace of dawn! _Illegally_!"

Just as Ezreal jumped up and launched his fist in the air victoriously, Ryze took the time to look around and get immersed in the place's majestic atmosphere. Even though everything was made out of petricite, the walls and pillars were decorated with the most delicate patterns he'd ever seen, while also serving as a reminder of the nation's power and ideals. He had seen the palace before, but the finest display of Demacian architecture left him in awe every single time he came back. It was, ironically, a very magical place.

Sylas, however, wasn't about to rejoice. The halls and all the energies hidden in the petricite foundations suddenly hit him with a sickening feeling, reminding him of all the wrong things that were currently happening in his homeland. All the pain and suffering his people had to go through, just because of the swine which lived carelessly in the very same castle... but he would have his revenge. And the magic coursing through his veins would be its instrument.

After a while of walking, the man suddenly stopped in his tracks. Ryze found it odd, but even he and Ezreal began to notice something was off.

"Why are there no guards in these halls?" asked Sylas, carefully inspecting their surroundings. And he was right; the palace was so empty that

"Indeed, it's pretty strange. I expected at least _someone_ to appear and try to stop us, but this is... very weird."

"It's a trap. Calling it," Ezreal said, continuing ahead of the two carelessly. Sylas forced a loud cough, after which Ezreal stopped and gave him an annoyed look. "Come on, there's nothing we can do at this point! Ryze needs to get to the king and you need to do... whatever you came here for. If we waste time thinking, they might manage to gather more guards and make it harder for us."

"I can see where you're coming from, but I'd rather take the time to make a plan instead of trying to pull off a suicide mission," said Ryze.

"Have no worries, my friend. If anything goes wrong, I still have an ace up my sleeve," Sylas replied, turning his head and giving the mage a reaffirming wink. "Your magic should be able to get us out, right?"

"Yeah, that's... right, I suppose. How far is the throne room?"

"Just 'round the corner," Sylas said, as Ezreal dashed ahead of the two and continued along the only path that lied ahead of them.

"Enough chatter guys. Let's suicide it!" the explorer joyfully exclaimed, speeding up to reach their final destination quicker. The two mages immediately ran after him, but the boy's excitement fueled him up so much that he outpaced the two without much effort.

Only a brief moment passed before they reached the final doorway to the throne room, which Ezreal paid no attention to. He knew everyone was waiting for them there, and so he charged up his gauntlet in case things suddenly went south. There was also the possibility of Sylas screwing them over, but he truly hoped they wouldn't have to deal with that anytime soon.

Gathering all of his strength, the boy smashed his body into the doors with full force... but it didn't even budge, as the young man was flung backwards.

"Okay... don't tell Lux," he said, but the two seemed to have ignored his words, as they were still heading in his direction at full throttle. Seeing Sylas readying his shoulder to ram into the door, Ezreal immediately rolled out of his way, letting the juggernaut bust the door open with ease.

"Amateur," he told the boy, which prompted him to get up and immediately dash into the room after them.

As they had expected, the room was filled to the brim with over a hundred guards aimed to their teeth, all of which donned the Dauntless Vanguard's signature armor. Two men stood in front of the armored battalions, wearing the exact same armor as their soldiers, the only difference being the lack of a protective helmet. One of those people was, unsurprisingly, Craig Anderson himself. Ezreal immediately sent him a cold, piercing glare, which the man returned without hesitation. Behind all of the soldiers was a large, delicately decorated petricite throne, upon which sat a single person. He had a large golden crown on his head and stared at the intruders with a cocky, confident smirk, letting them know that he was indeed... the king of Demacia.

"So... it would seem our guests have arrived earlier than expected," the king spoke up, in a voice that sent shivers up everyone's spines... except for Ezreal, who just shrugged it off and replied.

"Oh no, we have been discovered! Brothers, I propose we cease our schemes at once!" he said, forcing an accent similar to the one used by the Laurent family. And it sounded horrible.

"Seize that clown and his merry group at once. If necessary, you have the permission to kill. Except for Sylas of Dregbourne... I want that murderer alive," the king ordered, and his military obeyed without question, approaching the three intruders at a steady pace.

"What's the matter with you, Jarvan? Miss your dad already?" Sylas said, making the king grit his teeth and stand up from his throne, getting ready to unsheathe his sword. However, he kept his composure, which Sylas found pretty boring. Before things could get worse, Ryze stepped in between everyone, in an attempt to calm the situation down.

"It's great to see you again, old friend. I apologize for the trouble, but there was no other way we could have reached this place," he said, to which the king issued an order to halt his guards.

"There's no place for mage trash like you in this kingdom anymore. Especially not after you had the nerve to bring Sylas of Dregbourne with you," he replied.

"Well, you kind of left us with no options, smartass!" Ezreal told the king, which made the man

The soldiers then simultaneously returned to their march without the need of an order, prompting Sylas and Ezreal to get their weapons ready for a fight. However, Ryze wasn't going to give up so easily. He took the glowing rune out of his bag again, the blinding light making the soldiers freeze in their tracks.

"I only require the code. After that, we'll be out of your kingdom immediately. So if you don't want the rune to detonate and erase your kingdom from history, I suggest you make haste and cooperate."

Once again, the king simply laughed his words off, as the guards continued to approach the group at an alarming speed.

"I have no interest in your mind games, mage. You shall receive nothing from me... except the mercy of death that your miserable existence deserves," the king said, just as Sylas quickly grabbed Ryze and Ezreal by their shoulders and pulled them back through the doorway. "GUARDS! FORWARD!"

As the door closed, they were unable to see what was going on in the throne room, but the soldiers' footsteps suddenly became louder and more frequent. The guards were _running_.

"Okay, so... that's that. Can we kill him now that he doesn't want to help?" Sylas asked, to which the rune mage immediately shook his head.

"What? No! I just... I'll think of something. Give me some time."

"We'll try," Ezreal said, aiming his gauntlet at the door leading back to the king. "It's only a matter of time until they come from the other side too, so think quick!"

Unfortunately for the three, no matter how much Ryze tried to think, nothing came to his mind. There was never any backup plan in his mind, since king Jarvan had never acted in such a way before. The king's knowledge was the only piece of the puzzle he needed to successfully contain the world rune's power, but even though he was closer than before, his true objective was still far out of reach.

Maybe it was all fate. Maybe the runes were never meant to be concealed, and this was just destiny's way of telling him to finally stop trying. He had sacrificed so much to keep the world safe, but in the end, it might have all been for nothing... all those years spent looking for a way to cure the land of its own curse, gone in a brief moment. All the blood, and sorrow, and fear, and-

 _"Hey."_

A soft feminine voice suddenly spoke up from behind Ryze, giving him a miniature heart attack. As he felt a palm being placed on his shoulder, he instinctively lunged forward and turned around, only to see nothing but his own shadow standing in the empty hallway.

 _"Follow me."_

This time, the voice was quieter and more distant, which made it obvious that there was no telepathic magic at play... instead, there was an actual _something_ waiting in the shadows.

"Jarro, Sylas, give me a minute. I'll try something," the rune mage said, quickly disappearing behind a corner before the two could even give him a proper answer.

He continued to tiptoe through the halls, attempting to find the source of the voice. As he focused more on his surroundings, he began to feel a powerful magical aura not too far ahead, which made him very concerned. He tried to summon an orb of arcane energy to defend himself, and thankfully, he was finally able to conjure a small but stable ball of magical power in his hand. Just as he was about to launch it at the aura's source, he got stopped by a familiar voice.

"You promised that you wouldn't do anything to harm the king... and yet, here you are," the voice said, and Ryze now finally recognized it.

Letting out a sigh of relief, he allowed the magical orb to evaporate, as he watched the aura turn into an actual person. As soon as the figure showed herself, she briefly shook her head to get the long blonde hair out of her face, staring daggers at Ryze the entire time. Her pupils were shining with anger and disappointment, but even so, Ryze was glad to at least see a familiar face.

"Luxanna...?" he asked, in a tone of genuine surprise.

"What were you thinking? Did you seriously think marching into the throne room with the most dangerous criminal in Demacia by your side was a good idea?"

Ryze had to admit, she had a point... and a good one at that. However, with such a shortage of time, he didn't really want to waste his remaining moments on arguments.

"Jarvan the Third is a friend of mine. He helped me stabilize one of the other world runes before it could collapse, and after that, we met each other on several occasions throughout the years. The Jarvan I know would have never backed up on his word... I still can't wrap my head around it. Why would he refuse to help me?"

"Because that man is no longer Jarvan the Third. That's Jarvan the Fourth," Lux said, as a feeling of shock spread through Ryze's mind like an unstoppable plague. He knew how royal inheritance worked in Demacia; it was a place where kings would not abdicate, nor would they try to tarnish their own honor in any similar way. However, he still had to make sure whether his assumptions were correct.

"What? Where's the old king?" he asked.

"He was killed..." the girl replied, her voice cracking and losing its composure, as if she was overridden with guilt. "By none other than Sylas of Dregbourne; the man you brought to the palace."

Before Ryze had the chance to reply, Ezreal appeared from behind the corner with his gauntlet smoking excessively. His irregular breathing indicated that he'd already been in a fight, but he made a futile attempt to fix it as soon as he noticed Lux standing next to Ryze.

"Oh... hi Sparkle! How'd you... uh... get here?" the explorer asked, sounding just as surprised as Ryze had before.

"What happened? Where's Sylas?" the rune mage immediately asked, which made Ezreal begin scratching the back of his head nervously. And Ryze knew exactly what that meant.

"That's... kinda the problem, actually. Sylas is gone."

* * *

 _A/N: Hey hey hey, guess who's back with another extra late update! I'm sorry for delivering this chapter so late for y'all, life was a bit more complicated than usual, and my writing schedule suffered from it. However, here we are, done with yet another chapter of this story. In all honesty, I never actually expected to continue this far, so thanks for all the support you guys gave me._

 _While writing this chapter, I made so many changes to my original story plan, especially after reading the fourth issue of the Lux comic (if you haven't read it, you should. It's a real treat, especially for all of you lore freaks out there.) But overall, I think this story is still heading in a fairly decent direction. (*cough* for now *cough*)_

 _I'd really like to keep this pointless blabbering up to boost my word count, but no one actually reads these, so... Thanks for sticking by, and stay tuned for the next chapter!_

* * *

 **TO BE CONTINUED IN:**

 **Chapter Four**

 **Sparkle's Escape Plan**


End file.
